Restoring NCR's Ka-ching!

Under William Nuti, 129-year-old NCR has become the leading seller of ATMs and other digital point-of-sale devices. From the Bronx to the boardroom.

Even by the rough-and-tumble standards of the Bronx, William Nuti was a clever and resourceful kid. As a nine-year-old newspaper boy in New York City's northernmost borough, Nuti would work his way up an apartment building until he got to the roof. Then he would leap to the roof of the adjacent building, and work his way down again.

Nuti's Batman-like days might be over, but the same problem-solving instincts have served him well in the corporate world. As chief executive since 2005 of NCR (ticker: NCR), he has helped...